Tabard

A Tabard refers to a type of clothing bearing a symbol or design and worn in the tabard equipment slot over a character's chest armor. Originally a purely cosmetic item intended to add individuality to a character's look, similar to a shirt, they now often signal an adventurer is championing a cause and thus offer reputation for wearing one in a dungeon.

Overview

Historically, a tabard serves both as a sleeveless shirt or coat (often over armor), and as a means of displaying heraldry (as livery). For players, it can show membership in a guild or (for roleplay purposes) allegiance to a particular group, boast of deeds performed, or simply be decorative.

Patch 3.0.2 introduced the achievement system, which includes rewards for tabard collectors. The following general achievements are granted for obtaining 1, 10, 25 and 30 tabards respectively: [Represent], [Ten Tabards], [Twenty-Five Tabards] and [Thirty Tabards], with the Twenty-Five Tabards achievement granting the [Tabard of the Achiever]. Blizzard has voiced a desire to alleviate the amount of bag space taken up by tabards as has been done with mount and non-combat pet collections (which grant similar achievements), but has said that tabards with on-use effects are an issue.[1] However, keeping tabards is not required for the achievement; only equipping them. You can equip and sell or delete each tabard as you get it, and it will still count toward the achievement. Some tabards can be discarded and repurchased or reacquired at a tabard vendor. These generally include rewards from non-repeatable quests and achievements (such as the [Green Trophy Tabard of the Illidari]).

Reputation

Throughout The Burning Crusade, tabards were ways to exhibit the fact that you had achieved Exalted reputation with the various factions. When Wrath of the Lich King was released, tabards changed modes. The Northrend faction tabards were purchasable at Friendly reputation and enabled players to gain reputation while defeating monsters in high-level dungeons.

Northrend faction tabards award reputation while defeating monsters in Northrend heroic-mode dungeons and a few normal dungeons that had been tuned for level 80 characters.

In Cataclysm, the city tabards that had been introduced with the Argent Tournament were given reputation-enhancing abilities as well. The various factions introduced with Cataclysm also had tabards which could be used to gain reputation by defeating monsters in high-level Cataclysm dungeons.

Tabard vendors

There are, generally, two types of vendor that tabards can be purchased from.

Tabards associated with a faction are almost always available from the Quartermasters for that faction.

Visitor's Centers in most major cities have tabard vendors who sell Guild tabards. They also sell:

Burning Crusade faction tabards

Honor rank tabards

Battleground tabards

These additional tabards have the same purchase restrictions and costs from the visitor's center vendor as they do from the relevant quartermaster.

[Frostwolf Battle Tabard] has a blue backdrop with white trim, bearing a wolf's head at the center, with a crude shield covering it, both made out of blue and white, and with ice-colored and shaped symbols signifying the cold of Alterac Valley.

Arena tabards

During the Relentless, Furious and Wrathful seasons, arena tabards appropriate to the current season could be obtained from arena vendors upon earning a sufficiently high arena/battleground rating, and had a unique appearance. Arena tabards were removed from the game in patch 4.1.

The Burning Crusade tabards

Unless otherwise stated, exalted reputation with the respective faction is needed to purchase their tabard. These faction tabards are purchased from the faction's quartermaster for 1, 90 after discount.

The Argent Tournament Tabards are available from each faction once you become their Champion. They each cost 50 .
With the release of Cataclysm the faction city tabards are also available for purchase from vendors in the capital cities (for 10) and enable reputation gains in dungeons.

References

^Although the actual tabard is not obtainable, you can appear to wear one by wearing [Dalaran Wizard's Robe]; a cloth chest armor that drops randomly from Dalaran NPCs in Silverpine Forest. Only Horde can obtain the robe, as these NPCs are Friendly to Alliance. However, they can be sold at neutral Auction Houses. In addition, the [Tabard of the Kirin Tor] is available for sale.

^ abThis particular Scarlet Crusade tabard is unobtainable. It is worn by many of the higher ranking members of the organization. The [Tabard of the Scarlet Crusade], which is worn by the lowest-ranking members of the Crusade, is obtainable by players. See the Other Tabards section above.

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